Pope Regina Coeli: God's voice
brings true peace
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| Pope Francis during Regina Coeli (ANSA) |
On this Good Shepherd Sunday, Pope Francis underlines the
importance of being able to distinguish the voices of good and evil.
By Vatican News
On this the Fourth Sunday of Easter, Pope Francis delved
into the Gospel of the day which is dedicated to Jesus the Good Shepherd.
Speaking during the Regina Coeli, the Pope recalled that the
reading says that, “the sheep hear His voice, as He calls his own sheep by name
and leads them out” (Jn 10: 3).
Pope emphasized that “The Lord calls us by name, He calls us
because He loves us. But, the Gospel then tells us, there are other voices, not
to be followed: those of strangers, thieves and brigands who want to harm to
the sheep.”
Voices of good and evil
“These different voices resonate within us”, said the Pope.
“There is God’s voice, which speaks kindly to the conscience, and there
is the tempting voice that leads to evil.”
Pope Francis underlined the importance of be able to
distinguish “God’s inspiration from the insinuation of the evil one.”
He pointed out that “one can learn to discern these two
voices. They speak two different languages, that is, they have opposite ways of
knocking on the door of our hearts.”
“God’s voice never forces us: God proposes Himself, He does
not impose Himself. Instead, the evil voice seduces, assails, forces: it
arouses dazzling illusions, emotions that are tempting, but transient”, the
Pope said.
He noted that, the voice of the enemy distracts us from the
present and wants us to focus on fears of the future or sadness about the past.
The voice of true peace
The Pope continued by saying that “God’s voice, instead,
never promises cheap joy. It invites us to go beyond our ego to find that true
good, peace.”
In the end, emphasized Pope Francis, “God’s voice and the
tempter’s speak in different “surroundings”. The enemy prefers darkness,
falsehood, and gossip; the Lord loves sunlight, truth, and sincere
transparency.”
Before the recitation of the Regina Coeli, the Pope invited
the faithful to ask for the grace to recognise and follow the voice of the Good
Shepherd “who brings us out of the enclosures of selfishness and leads us to
the pastures of true freedom.”
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